Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) Shares Sold by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its position in shares of Valero Energy Co. (NYSE:VLO) by 17.6% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,775 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,438 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Valero Energy were worth $2,805,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VLO. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of Valero Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $219,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valero Energy during the 1st quarter worth $256,000. BOKF NA increased its holdings in shares of Valero Energy by 402.7% in the 1st quarter. BOKF NA now owns 17,303 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,987,000 after purchasing an additional 13,861 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Valero Energy by 3.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,063,923 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $352,292,000 after purchasing an additional 65,632 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.69% of the company’s stock.

Valero Energy Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE VLO opened at $140.87 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $136.59 and a 200-day moving average of $145.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Valero Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $184.79. The company has a market cap of $44.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.39.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The oil and gas company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.16. Valero Energy had a net margin of 2.74% and a return on equity of 13.07%. The company had revenue of $32.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.49 earnings per share. Valero Energy’s revenue was down 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Valero Energy Co. will post 8.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Valero Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Valero Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on VLO. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Valero Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $172.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Valero Energy in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $150.00 target price for the company. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Valero Energy from $175.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Valero Energy from $146.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut Valero Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $169.00 to $123.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valero Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.86.

Valero Energy Company Profile

Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, Mexico, Peru, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol.